benjaminhardman

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B E N J A M I N

benjaminhardman

Photographer

Based in Iceland.
Expeditions @stormexped
Contact | hello@benjaminhardman.com
Courses & expeditions ↡

Followed by izzyhalpin, taniatirle and 2 more

Join me in Greenland this August!

Super excited to be returning to Scoresbysund for another epic sailing expedition through the biggest fjord in the world with @stormexped on board the wooden schooner Ópal.

There is a strong photography focus throughout the voyage, taking us deep into the fjord system in search of glacial scenes and wildlife. We will be fully offline, disconnected from the world allowing for full immersion in nature. Travelling on Ópal, we will be in a very small group of 12 people making the experience even more special. If you are into flying drones, this is a rare opportunity to create aerial imagery in the Arctic. I don’t think I’ve ever created as many unique shots in one voyage as these trips through Scoresbysund!

Trip dates: August 27 - September 3rd, 2025.

We have just a few seats remaining. If this sounds like a trip for you, head over to the @stormexped website to book your place!

#greenland

Grímsvötn mission accomplished 🤘🏼

It’s been a dream for years to drive my Jeep to the summit of Grímsfjall, situated at Iceland’s most active volcano on top of Europe’s largest glacier. Yesterday, we made it happen!

With @reynir_adventures taking the lead in his 44” Land Cruiser followed by @siggiworld and I in our @stormexped beasts, we drove through the most incredible evening light on our way up the glacier. Arriving to the huts at the summit, the northern lights greeted us with an insane show.

This was a trip and experience I will cherish forever. Thanks to @eydismariaolafs @traboldphotography and @reynirr for joining us on the mission!

#iceland #vatnajökull #grímsvötn

Arctic ice drifting on a frozen lake with @polestarcars.

Each winter, the Polestar team heads north to Jokkmokk in Sweden to test their electric vehicles in extreme Arctic conditions.

This month I had the opportunity to join them and learn the ropes of drifting the cars on their ice racing track. We had the Polestar 2, Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 with us and had the chance to experience each vehicle out on the ice. These cars are wild, a perfect blend of performance and aesthetics. At the end of the session, a team of precision race drivers took us on a hot lap in their fleet of custom ice modified Polestars, with hundreds of spikes in each tire. I couldn’t believe the speeds they could reach while still having complete control of every turn, these guys are next level.

Head to my YouTube channel to see the full video!

#polestarcars #ad #polestar2 #polestar3 #polestar4

Last week in the mountains of Iceland.
Just wrapped an incredible @stormexped five day mission across the highlands. We traversed one of the most remote stretches of the country, passing over Iceland’s biggest river Þjórsá, which is frozen in place during the coldest months of the winter.

I feel like this trip was a reminder of the beauty and opportunities that nature can present if you allow for full immersion into the mountains. Give yourself time, don’t plan too far ahead and let the weather guide you.

Thanks to all eight of our guests and @siggiworld for an adventure I’ll never forget. We haven’t launched the dates for next season just yet, but I’ll share it here as soon we any info 🤙🏼

#iceland

Life on the Antarctic peninsula.
On one of our last days before heading back to sail the drake passage, we woke up to this incredible snowfall over the sea ice. Freezing temps and the sound of ice floes drifting past.

In an area with almost no wildlife, all of a sudden we came across one particular ice floe where a crabeater seal and lone Adélie penguin had decided to rest.

One of the most beautiful things about the polar regions is how variable the conditions can be. From snowfall, clear skies to bright bursts of light over the mountains, you can experience so much in just one day.

#antarctica

From day to night in Uummannaq, West Greenland.

Exploring the frozen sea ice landscape around the island by dogsled really made me feel the remoteness of this area. We had heard of a towering iceberg far out in the fjord, but the mission to reach it left us fighting for time to make it back before a storm hit the area. We almost made it when the wind began to warn us of what’s coming, so we turned back. Luckily I could send the drone the rest of the way to photograph the towers.

When the weather eventually rolled in, it was so intense we stayed inside for a couple of days. The Arctic is full of challenges and surprises, you just have to work with the conditions you are given by nature and let the story play out in its own way.

#greenland #arctic

My new go to cinema camera.
I have been looking for a new camera that can fit the needs of both in field and studio-based filmmaking projects, a run and gun style setup that you can always count on.

This winter I put the @canonnordic EOS C80 to the test here in Iceland and absolutely love it so far, paired with the RF 24-105mm F2.8L IS USM Z. It’s a beast in low light, beautiful clean 6K footage and has all the practical features to make life easy in the field.

Head over to my YouTube channel to see the full video, covering my favourite specs and example footage from the mountains.

Camping on the ice at the edge of the Greenland ice sheet ❄️

One of the coldest nights I’ve ever spent outdoors, complete with the northern lights dancing over the tents. After many hours travelling by dogsled, we returned in the blue hour to Qasigiannguit before heading north to Ilulissat. An incredible few days in the west of Greenland.

#greenland

The storm that almost got us..
On our last @stormexped trip into the highlands of Iceland, we faced some challenging weather that ultimately led to the dream photography conditions 👌🏼

Full video live on my YouTube channel.

#iceland

The tele lens debate: 2x extenders or crop in instead?
New video live on my YouTube channel, four days of photography adventure in Svalbard with @naturalworldsafaris.

Over the years I’ve tried a lot of tele lens combinations in these environments, all the way up to 1200mm. I’ve had quite a lot of trouble with extenders, especially the 2x converters. These days I prefer to stick to the original focal length, in this case the Canon RF 400mm f/2.8, and then crop in on the files in post. It’s lead to greater sharpness and flexibility, but has only been effective with the higher resolution sensors of the last few years. Heat haze is often an issue as well, making the super long focal lengths basically useless. Cropping for the win!

Head to @benjaminhardman on YouTube or the link in my story for the full video 🤘🏼

#svalbard #photography #polarbear

Svalbard over the years.
The high Arctic truly feels like a second home ❄️

These images were captured over many years of exploring the archipelago through a mix of land based expeditions and ship based travel aboard @rvkinfish with @naturalworldsafaris. I have found that the spring season has been my favourite time to be in Svalbard. The snow covered landscape is incredibly pristine with 24 hours of light.

Throughout this series there are however also shots from the summer, late winter and Autumn. No matter the time of year, there’s always something incredible to observe!

#svalbard #arctic #wildlife

The not so calm after the storm.
We’ve just returned from our latest @stormexped mission to the center of Iceland, the most challenging so far. Here’s are a few moments from the last two days, where we experienced every kind of weather possible!

Thanks to @joel.c.mott for helping me capture the first shot during a sudden and short lived blizzard in the blue hour.

This week posed many challenges, with our trip scheduled to start right as the biggest storm for years hit Iceland. We waited out the worst of the weather in town before beginning the push into the mountains during the night once the wind calmed down. Flooding had smashed road and left a few obstacles to battle, but it was an amazing feeling to be able to reach the cabin and experience the purest form of winter in the highlands.

#iceland

Today in Iceland looks a lot like this 🌪️

It’s not often we have a red storm warning, but today we are feeling the force of a huge storm all around the country.

I’ll never forget waking up to this storm a couple of years ago in the highlands. It hit way earlier than forecasted and left us in quite the survival battle. That day definitely taught me a lot and it’s very easy to underestimate the power of storms here, especially in the winter.

You can see all the up to date info at @safetravel_iceland 🙏🏼

#iceland #storm

Midwinter dreams in the Icelandic highlands.
Here is a collection from yesterday’s mission to Landmannalaugar. We had the craziest conditions with fresh powder snow, clear skies and freezing temperatures down to -24°C.

The first frame of the white snowy valley is the first time since 2015 that I’ve managed to capture these pure winter conditions in this area. The original image from 10 years ago is still one of my favourites I’ve ever captured and it’s been fun to try recreate it over the years, this time on the Inspire 3.

#iceland

On the ice at the North Pole.
Standing at 90°N was one of the most powerful experiences I’ve had in the Arctic. Whilst the sea ice landscape looks the same for hundreds of kilometres, it was the simple fact of every single thing on Earth being to the south that really impacted me.

Shortly after reaching the geographical North Pole we found a place to stop and disembark onto the ice. It was amazing to see how our expedition leader @the_outdoorgirl managed the entire operation so well, with the safety of guests and crew as the ultimate priority. Ice thickness, polar bear safety and monitoring the weather are at the core of her role. Along with her fellow guides on board, they carry out all of these checks before the passengers disembark onto the ice.

#exploration #ponant #lecommandantcharcot @lecommandantcharcot

Roaming into the blue hour.
On my journey back down to Greenland from the North Pole, we came across this beautiful Polar Bear at the edge of the Arctic pack ice.

It was one of the last days of light before the 24 hours dark season set in for the winter. Could you imagine life on the sea ice in complete darkness, relying purely on sense of smell?

#arctic #polarbear

Join me in Svalbard this for a high Arctic sailing mission this May!

I’ll be back for another season of adventures with @naturalworldsafaris, heading North into the most remote coastal regions of the archipelago. Here’s a collection of shots from my previous trips on board the legendary @rvkinfish.

Throughout our 9 day expedition, you’ll have the opportunity to experience Arctic wildlife, truly out of this world landscapes and spend time offline with our group of just 12 guests. Life on board in a small group means you’re quick to unite as a family, sharing amazing meals and special moments around our adventures, it’s one of my favourite times of the year. The photographic opportunities are always next level as well, especially with the fact that you’ll have 24 hours of sun!

The trip I’ll be guiding will take place this May 21st to 29th, you can see all the info on the @naturalworldsafaris website via the link in my bio.

Looking forward to adventuring with some of you guys this spring 👌🏼

#svalbard

That’s AI…
New video live on YouTube. After 130 million views, I thought it was time to sit down and share the story behind my Polar Bear video. One of the most jaw dropping scenes I’ve ever captured in the Arctic, and no… it’s most definitely not AI.

Head over to my YouTube channel to see the full video!

Closing out a decade at home in the Arctic.
Here is a collection of what 2024 had to offer on my expeditions in the North. It was a year that really left an impact on me and my career.

Gaining citizenship in Iceland, watching my daughter grow through her first year of life, standing at the North Pole and sharing so many incredible Arctic experiences with friends and guests on expeditions across Svalbard, Greenland and Iceland made this year a true milestone.

For my friends who have made this year so special and to all of you who have followed along on the many expeditions, thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas from the North ❄️

After the sudden loss of my mother last month, I’ve taken some time off the last few weeks to be with my girls and my family back in Australia.

This time of year can be full of amazing moments, but also challenges and feelings of loneliness. I’ve found so much peace and healing in nature, especially seeing the sun and moon on these beautiful clear days in the highlands this month.

Here are some scenes from my last trip of the year, it was a beautiful one. Being from Australia, my mum only got to see Iceland one time. On that trip we shared a magical trip in the mountains, camping out nearby to the area in these images.

Being able to connect to the landscape in person, I really think that experience helped her to finally understand why I would move across the world to follow a dream on this little volcanic island so far from home. She’ll always be there now watching over us ❤️

The contrasts of our @stormexped Iceland expeditions.
We have some last minute availability on our five day trip this December 5-9th.

We will be heading deep into the highlands in our Arctic modified 4x4s to explore the winter landscape and staying at the @stormexped mountain hut, one of my favourite places on the planet.

Send me a message if you would be interested to join us for a true winter adventure 🤘🏼

#iceland

Watching the horizon slowly roll from the top of the mast as we navigate through a world of ice in Antarctica 🇦🇶

Sometimes the best camera is the one in your pocket. I captured these clips on my iPhone and brought them to life with colour grading. You can see my full video editing workflow in my new online course, the Nature Filmmaking Academy, which is currently available at 30% off via the link in my bio!

#shotoniphone #antarctica

Cruising on the Gentoo penguin highway.

One of the most memorable parts of exploring the Antarctic peninsula is seeing (and smelling) the penguin rookeries scattered around the landscape.

The gentoos often create these paths through the ice which all of them tend to follow. It doesn’t go down well when one decides to stop 🐧

#antarctica #gentoo #penguin

Sailing to Antarctica.
The most wild voyage of my career and a series of images that I will cherish forever.

If you would like to book a last minute sailing expedition to Antarctica this season on board the one and only @barkeuropa, send me a message 🌊

#antarctica

The presale for my new video masterclass is live!
For the next 48 hours only, you can preorder the course with a 50% discount via the link in bio.

The Nature Filmmaking Academy gives you access to 50+ videos breaking down my entire video workflow. It brings together a decade long passion for documenting nature. First as a professional landscape photographer and then transitioning into the natural history cinematography world, where I’ve spent hundreds of days in the field perfecting the craft of filming landscapes, both with drones and handheld cameras.

Head to the link in my bio to see a full breakdown of the course and I look forward to sharing it you all very soon!

#iceland #filmmaking

It’s just 2 days until the presale begins for my Nature Filmmaking Academy! You’ll be able to preorder the course at a 50% discount for the first 48 hours only.

Over the last year I have been documenting behind the scenes of my film projects in the field and building a series of 50+ videos covering my entire filmmaking process for documenting nature with drones and handheld cameras.

When I landed my first natural history shoot, I had to learn everything from scratch after getting briefed from some of the biggest producers in the industry, who were relying on me purely based on my fine art photographs. It was the opportunity of a lifetime, but I had to work harder than I’d ever done before to build these filmmaking skills from scratch.

Five years later and having proudly contributed to some of the biggest natural history series on Netflix, it has been a dream to create a course that can help you to learn everything about filming nature that I wish I could have known from the start. From gear breakdowns, making sense of all the video settings, in-field filming techniques through to my editing and grading workflow in Davinci Resolve, this course will cover my entire filmmaking process.

Head to the link in my bio to sign up for the 50% off presale launching November 1st and I’ll send you an email with a breakdown of the course!

#iceland #drone #filmmaking

The Icelandic winter is here ❄️
Just wrapped an amazing few days in Kerlingarfjöll with @petermckinnon and @alexandersworik.

We got lucky to explore the first proper snow of the season and managed to drive up to Hveradalir after a proper winter 4x4 ascent.

It’s also Pete’s birthday today.
Happy birthday brother!!

#iceland

I’ve never seen light like this.
The last degree to the North Pole has the most magical and otherworldly light I have ever seen. There is nowhere else on planet Earth other than the poles where the sun orbits along the edge of the horizon for all 360° with out going up or down. It’s almost 6 months of constant day and 6 months of constant dark, with a 2 week long sunset and twilight in the transition.

Footage captured with my Mavic 3 Pro and Inspire 3 from a sea ice landing on @lecommandantcharcot at 89° North, on our way to the North Pole.

#northpole #drone #ponant #arctic #seaice #exploration #lecommandantcharcot

Introducing: The Nature Filmmaking Academy.

I’m proud to announce the upcoming presale of my new filmmaking masterclass, tailored specifically for filming nature using drones, handheld cameras and gimbals. There will be a special 50% off pre-sale discount for those who purchase the course during the first 48 hours, starting on November 1st.

It was around five years ago that my decade long career in photography took a turn into cinematography. I had the opportunity to see how my photographic eye would translate to moving image using drones on the Netflix series Life On Our Planet. That series marked the beginning of a new era for my career and I’ve since worked year round on natural history productions to hone my skills of filming nature, both in Iceland and the Polar regions.

This course will cover my entire filmmaking workflow, from the gear and drones that I use in different outdoor filming situations, my approach for sequence building in the field, my go to camera settings, to how I craft edits and colour grade my footage in Davinci Resolve.

I have a huge passion for colour grading that stems from years of building cohesive and stylised photographic edits. Applying those skills to video grading has led to some interesting techniques that I am excited to share with you guys.

What makes the Nature Filmmaking Academy special is that it’s not only an online course, but also a platform for you to join in field mentoring programs and cinematography workshops in Iceland with @stormexped, exclusively for those who have enrolled in the course.

To be notified for the 48 hour presale, sign up via the link in my bio. You’ll receive a newsletter with a breakdown of the course, ahead of the preorder launch on November 1st.

Stay tuned for more insights about the course 🤘🏼

Into the storm.
It has been almost a decade since I first met @siggiworld at his mountain hut.

I was invited by a close friend to join an Icelandic highland winter mission that Siggi was leading. He approved my very random Aussie attendance on that trip (I’d just moved to iceland) purely because he had once been to Perth and liked the people there, how lucky I was.

To this day that was one of the most memorable trips I’ve done, getting to see how the Icelanders embrace the extremes and traverse the winter landscape with the most uplifting spirit. It was truly life changing experience.

Fast forward all these years and I am so grateful for what Siggi has taught me. His generosity to share a lifetime of mountain survival knowledge has been the backbone for everything I know about being outdoors in the extremes.

Three years ago we decided it was time to build something new, an expedition company with the sole purpose of bringing people along on the missions we loved to do in our spare time, the most fun ones that keep our passion for the mountains alive. This is where @stormexped was born.

We are about to begin our winter season with a series of three multi-day expeditions here in Iceland and there are a few seats still available. We also just launched our East Greenland sailing expedition for next summer. Head to @stormexped to see all of the info!

These images were captured by @asasteinars, @siggiworld and I when we ventured out from our mountain hut with some brave guests to feel the raw power of an Arctic storm.

#iceland

Life on the ice.
A collection of moments from the last few years in the high Arctic, both out at sea and along the coast of Svalbard.

Seeing Polar Bears navigating the world of Arctic sea ice is a reminder of their incredible resilience for survival, pushing on in some of the toughest conditions on Earth. On our last expedition we saw Polar bear tracks all the way up at 87° North.

#polarbear

From the North Pole to Mars.
Back home in Iceland with @eydismariaolafs and we spent today exploring some alien landscapes in the south.

We have been obsessed with the new Drangar insulated jacket from @66north. As both of us work as photographers, it’s so rare that we take a photo together. Thank you to the rock we balanced the camera on!

The Drangar is one of those outer layers that really works well in varying conditions, from the extreme cold of the Arctic sea ice to a stroll in downtown Reykjavik. The best part is that it’s fully vegan and made from recycled materials. My obsession with outdoor garments gets stronger by the day 😁

#iceland #ad

Scoresbysund, East Greenland.
After two weeks in the ice, it was a wild feeling to step on land again in one of my favourite landscapes on Earth.

Our ship @lecommandantcharcot was a safe space in the ice and over the course of the trip I have built a strong connection to it. After years of sailing only on small boats and tall ships, it’s the first time it has really felt right to join a bigger ship expedition.

Charcot is one of a kind in the ice, and aside from its luxuries, the engineering of the vessel is mind blowing. It has a polar class 2 hull and uses electric Azipod propulsion units that can rotate 360°. The generation of electricity comes from four generators that use a mix of fuel, LNG and lithium ion batteries. It moves in almost complete silence, which took a minute to get used to. It reminds me of our Arctic modified 4x4’s in Iceland, which are capable of travel in even the most extreme glacial conditions.

These metrics make it possible for this ship to travel where and when no other passenger ships can. Our voyage was the very last one for the season in Scoresbysund, allowing us to document the beginning of winter in a time when few have travelled there before.

I am now back home in Iceland and excited to work through all of the video material. I’ll be publishing a YouTube series from the North Pole mission in the coming months. Stay tuned!

#arctic #greenland #ponant #exploration #lecommandantcharcot

Ittoqqortoormiit, East Greenland.

After a long journey through the sea ice, we have finally reached land once again. With a population of around 350 people, Itto is one of the smallest towns in Greenland, but even so it took a moment to adjust after two weeks completely off the grid in the ice.

Seeing the local people going about their day, feeding their dogs and preparing for the winter left me feeling a deep sense of admiration for these people. It’s a truly wild place to live, one of the most remote communities in the world, with culture and tradition as the backbone of the town.

They also feel like neighbours, with the town situated only few hundred miles from Iceland. Sailing between can though be a rough experience, I have been stuck in some wild weather on that crossing in the past, but I am quite sure our journey home to Iceland on board @lecommandantcharcot will be a smooth one even though the forecast shows some interesting conditions.

We will now be exploring Scoresbysund, heading to the Bear Islands. I’m excited to document the first snow over the mountains ❄️

#ittoqqortoormiit #greenland #exploration #ponant #lecommandantcharcot

Heading south in the whiteout.
With the North Pole behind us, we now begin our journey towards Greenland.

To spend almost two weeks in the sea ice and document every stage of ice formation has opened my eyes in many ways. A constantly shifting and extreme environment. There is so much to share from this experience.

Whilst being an icebreaker of the highest grade, it has been admirable to see the captain’s approach to reaching the North Pole on @lecommandantcharcot, utilising satellite imagery to search for and follow open leads amongst the ice floes all the way to 90°. This process is aimed to avoid impact on multi year sea ice.

With the speed of ice drift, it can be a huge challenge to find these open channels, adding hundreds of miles to the route. In the end this method proved successful the entire journey, which followed the same track back down south. It was also interesting to see not a single Polar Bear or seal during our time in the sea ice, with all of our sightings instead being in the marginal ice zone at the edge of open ocean.

Thank you all for being a part of the journey so far and stay tuned for the Greenland chapter of this voyage in the biggest fjord on Earth, Scoresbysund.

#arctic #seaice #ponant #lecommandantcharcot

The return of the Sun.

Heading into the infinite blue hour of the North Pole felt like stepping into an entirely different reality. Seeing the glow of a polar sunrise again felt the same. A welcomed sight. I can’t imagine an entire 5 month period of darkness, but for the Polar Bears that roam so far north in the pack ice, that season is about to arrive.

#arctic #polarbear #sun

The home of the Polar Bear.
Today we reached the marginal ice zone at 82° on our way down from the North Pole. This area was full of newly formed circular pancake ice and marks the bridge between the open ocean and the dense Arctic sea ice.

After a week of seeing no Polar bears further north (only a few tracks), we witnessed 6 individual and healthy looking Polar Bears in the marginal ice zone, as well as a few seals. This area seems to be teeming with life.

Seeing Polar Bears stand up always comes as a shock. It seems like an unnatural movement but is something that they do all the time to get a higher vantage point.

Captured on the Ronin 4D on board @lecommandantcharcot as we make our way towards Greenland out at sea.

#polarbear #ponant #lecommandantcharcot #exploration #arctic #wildlife

Textures of the North Pole.
Throughout the last degree of our push to 90° North, I focused closely on documenting the pressure ridges and areas with different types of ice intersecting one another. With a blend of fresh snow over grease ice, first year and multi year ice, these scenes highlight how varied the ice conditions are on top of Earth in 2024.

Now we are seeing the beginning of the winter freeze and within days from now, the North Pole will rest in complete darkness until March next year.

Images captured on board @lecommandantcharcot where we are now at 85° and navigating southwards with the goal of reaching Greenland in a few days time.

#northpole #arctic #lecommandantcharcot #ponant

The North Pole.

On the 1st of October, we reached the geographic North Pole on board @lecommandantcharcot. Here is an image of the ice floes directly on top of Earth just after we arrived to 90°N.

Under the light of the eternal blue hour, we stepped outside at the northernmost point of our planet. The entire world to the south, all time zones and everyone we know. The exact point that so many of the great polar explorers pushed the limits of human capability to reach.

This is the latest voyage that the ship has done, the last time window possible before total darkness. A few weeks prior the North Pole was in open water. Here you can see newly frozen ice, the first sign of winter on the way. The weather was very fitting to the occasion, with fresh snow over the ice floes and a chilling Arctic gale.

My goal for this expedition was to create an image that reflects the true nature of this landscape. There is no landmark, no pole, instead a vast and silent world of Arctic sea ice.

The ice is always moving here, making it physically impossible to be situated exactly at 90° North for more than just a few seconds.

Thank you guys for being a part of this journey so far and I look forward to sharing more images and observations from the top of our planet in the coming days.

#exploration #northpole #ponant #lecommandantcharcot

Expedition recap from our first days at sea heading to the North Pole.

We are currently at 86° on board @lecommandantcharcot and heading north as the crew work around the clock to carefully navigate the dense pack ice.

It’s only been three days, but there have already been several occasions where I am simply out of words. This feels like another planet.

Today we said goodbye to the sun, which will from here all the way to the North Pole will hover just a few degrees below the horizon for the entire day. This means we will now experience not darkness, but a constant 24/7 polar blue hour with pastel skies. Nowhere else on Earth is this possible, just at the poles.

I have only ever travelled on 12 pax vessels, sailing boats and tall ships before this voyage. The Charcot is on a whole other level with its Polar class 2 ice breaking capability and state of the art technology on board. It feels like a space ship. They have travelled through ice pressure ridges upwards of 15m high on previous expeditions proving this ships extreme ice abilities, also making several world firsts in the Arctic.

I have been holding off from this type of voyage until I truly felt like I had a meaningful story to shoot up here, and I do with the full weight acknowledge the fact I am working on a trip that moves through the Arctic sea ice.

Part of my pursuit is to build a deeper understanding of how this ship operates in terms of tourism and science programs, and most importantly to create a visual story about the current state of the landscape at the northernmost tip of our planet. To brings these images to all of you is something that I really believe can make a difference.

One of my first observations is that we are still seeing open water leads at 86° North, which the captain makes very conscious efforts to follow even if it adds hundreds of extra miles to the route.

I will continue to report as the days go on, hopefully very soon from 90° North.

All the best for now,
Ben

#exploration #ponant #arctic

Walking on water.
After reaching the sea ice at 82° North, we came across this young male Polar Bear riding the storm swells and navigating effortlessly through a maze of pack ice. One of the most incredible sights I’ve witnessed in the Arctic. Watch until the end to see the power of the swell moving beneath the ice.

Captured on the Ronin 4D aboard @lecommandantcharcot on our way to the North Pole.

#exploration #ponant #arctic #polarbear

First encounters in the high Arctic.
Our journey to the North Pole is underway on board @lecommandantcharcot and we’ve just reached the sea ice edge at 81° North. Shortly after reaching the pack ice, we came across this beautiful male Polar Bear carefully balancing on the floes as swells of several meters rolled through. Every step carefully planned and executed, even dragging ice closer to itself to make bridges between the floes.

Our journey is just beginning. This is a new mode of travel for me travelling on a much bigger ice class ship and still taking it all in. Over the coming days I’ll bring you guys regular updates, images of the experience and observations from the ice.

Captured with the Canon RF 400mm f2.8 telephoto lens.

#ponant #exploration #lecommandantcharcot

The atmosphere of East Greenland.
Topped by the most peaceful moment on a hill when this Arctic fox appeared and walked all the way up to us, the memories and experiences we shared on the @stormexped Scoresbysund trip were absolutely surreal.

After a decade of missioning around the Arctic, there is literally always something new to capture. You can join us next year for another round of sailing and good times on board Ópal. All the info can be found on the @stormexped website.

Stoked for the next voyage ⚓️

Finding balance.
In the distance I noticed this iceberg begin to lift on one side, as if it had suddenly woken up from a long rest.

As the iceberg searched for stability, some huge pieces collapsed into the fjord, causing a thunderous echo across the mountains.

Once it finally settled, a wave rolled over the blue surface. A colour combination so vivid that it can put you in a trance.

Moments like this are constantly occurring throughout the summer, but it is a huge challenge to film them as you never know where or when it might occur.

#greenland

One of the biggest glacial calving events I’ve ever witnessed, deep in the fjords of Scoresbysund.

A few days into our East Greenland expedition, @siggiworld and I noticed a few shards of ice beginning to fall from the edge of this outlet glacier. We sent our drones on a mission to get a closer look.

Right as we positioned the drones for two different angles and began to record, this entire section of the glacier released. The chance timing left us in disbelief.

The sounds were immense, as was the wave that soon made its way under our sailing boat. I have never seen so much ice activity in one week, the temperature fluctuations had been quite extreme with heavy rain and then clear cold conditions.

Glacial calving sounds added from the @artlist.io SFX library.

#greenland

Arctic contrasts.

This summer I’ve been testing a new drone lens from @djiglobal, the 75mm f1.8. Today the lens was launched and I have released a YouTube video with my thoughts on its performance.

There have been some crazy moments captured this year, from the first moments of volcanic eruptions to the remote coast of East Greenland. I think the footage is best seen in 4K over on my YouTube channel, but for now here are a few of the clips!

#djiinspire3

The many sides of an iceberg.

Truly incredible sights on the east coast of Greenland. We spotted this iceberg with an ‘eye’ radiating light towards us. As we approached closer, I was able to send my drone in and position it close up to the feature. Framing the ship as we sailed past made for an epic moment of photography ⚓️

#greenland

Sailing through glacial silt.

In places where fresh water mixes with the silt filled glacial melt water, some very interesting patterns can be found. After a night anchored inside a fjord where many glacial rivers run into the ocean, we sailed right through the middle of the mixing streams, stirring up the silt. The trail of the boat leaves an incredible swirl of colour.

I asked our captain Áki to do a loop for us and captured these drone images of our boat Hildur on our way out to sea. Almost looks like a portal into a different world.

#greenland

benjaminhardman

benjaminhardman

Introducing: The Nature Filmmaking Academy.

I’m proud to announce the upcoming presale of my new filmmaking masterclass, tailored specifically for filming nature using drones, handheld cameras and gimbals. There will be a special 50% off pre-sale discount for those who purchase the course during the first 48 hours, starting on November 1st.

It was around five years ago that my decade long career in photography took a turn into cinematography. I had the opportunity to see how my photographic eye would translate to moving image using drones on the Netflix series Life On Our Planet. That series marked the beginning of a new era for my career and I’ve since worked year round on natural history productions to hone my skills of filming nature, both in Iceland and the Polar regions.

This course will cover my entire filmmaking workflow, from the gear and drones that I use in different outdoor filming situations, my approach for sequence building in the field, my go to camera settings, to how I craft edits and colour grade my footage in Davinci Resolve.

I have a huge passion for colour grading that stems from years of building cohesive and stylised photographic edits. Applying those skills to video grading has led to some interesting techniques that I am excited to share with you guys.

What makes the Nature Filmmaking Academy special is that it’s not only an online course, but also a platform for you to join in field mentoring programs and cinematography workshops in Iceland with @stormexped, exclusively for those who have enrolled in the course.

To be notified for the 48 hour presale, sign up via the link in my bio. You’ll receive a newsletter with a breakdown of the course, ahead of the preorder launch on November 1st.

Stay tuned for more insights about the course 🤘🏼

23 w

karimiliya

if i buy this tutorial, does it come with a beard and hat?

joe_shutter

Brilliant concept

gwilymcpugh

Do you get a profile photo like this banger included??

norrisniman

I want to film like you.

manny.dream

The king with his swords 🔥

asasteinars

So exciting 🙏🏼🙌🏼

kyanasue

The classroom we needed 🙌

jerome.chevereau

Hello Benjamin, first congratulations on your particularly inspiring work. I have a question, where can we find details about your new masterclass cinematography? Thank you

donalboyd

Color grading lessons with Ben is going to surpass any Davinci tutorial on YouTube hands down … folks, get on this!!

knutjentefut

Aren’t your ears cold? Really worth looking cool for?

rudyvillalona

The I3 is just crazy man. CinemaDNG not dead.

shannondave419

So why all the over expensive camera gear, when all we really need is good post software 🤔 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️😢😡

21 October 2024